Next Generation
by dnelle
Summary: Leonard and Penny's son writes the story of the Shenny: the ship that never sailed, while creating a love story of his own.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey everyone! Hope y'all are having wonderful holidays :) The story you're reading is a multi-chapter one, and it's all about Shenny in a way (yeah, yeah, I know.) Anyway, hope you guys like it! **

**Standard disclaimers apply: TBBT's not mine, etc.**

**P.S.: I'm accepting prompts for short fics :) please give me something to work on because I have no school yet and I am so, so bored. =)) **

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><p>"There are so many stories about two people in love with each other... But what about those who love but are not loved in return?"<p>

She had told me those words a long time ago, but they still haunt me. It was true, wasn't it? There aren't many stories of unrequited love.

"Maybe there are millions of them," I answer. "They're just not as popular as those stories where a boy and a girl have a meet-cute, fall in love, and live happily ever after."

She didn't respond to that for a long time. "Maybe," she eventually sighs.

"What's wrong?" I ask her, suddenly worried.

She looks at me with sad eyes. "Have I ever told you the story of my unrequited love?"

I shake my head, and she smiles. "Do you want to hear it?"

"Um," I shrug. "Alright."

She sits beside me on the couch, and I see her eyes glimmer as she starts telling me the story.

* * *

><p>"Hi," she greeted him as their paths crossed at the bottom of the stairs. She knew her routine by heart, it seemed, so she knew when he was leaving for work.<p>

"Hey, Penny," her fiancé greeted her cheerfully. But her eyes were on the man beside him. "Hey, Penny," he echoed.

She knew she shouldn't be feeling the way she was, but she couldn't help it. A girl can dream, right?

"Dinner in my apartment tonight?" Leonard asked, and she nodded. "Sure, thanks." She replied. He kissed her on the cheek and she watched them leave as she retrieved her mail. There was a skip in her step as she climbed the stairs.

She has asked herself this question so many times-why? Why was she in a relationship with Leonard? Why was she going to marry him? Why was she in love with someone other than the man she was going to spend the rest of her life with?

She had so many questions and so few answers that she threw herself into the shower to get ready for work instead.

* * *

><p>"Love is a funny, messed-up thing, don't you think?" She ask me. I look up from my laptop, where I have started writing parts of the story she is telling me. "How would I know?" I answer, smirking.<p>

She rolls her eyes at me-a standard move I've seen since I was a young boy. "How about you try falling in love for once?" She asks.

"I have work to do," I counter. It's true-I am a novelist whose next book is overdue. My publisher-a huge pain in the ass-won't stop pressuring me to finish another book.

"All work and no play," she shakes her head. "Even Sheldon had time to play even if he was nose-deep in his work."

My eyebrows shoot up at the mention of Uncle Sheldon. "Say what?"

"Sheldon," she replies nonchalantly. "After working, he would play with his friends. Dungeons and Dragons, I think was it. With Leonard and Raj and Howard."

"How would you know?" I ask. She grins. "Listen to my story, sweetie."

* * *

><p>"Hey, you guys," she said as she opened Leonard and Sheldon's apartment. Leonard stood and offered her his seat. "Hey, you."<p>

She sat on the armchair at Sheldon's left side, and glanced at Amy, the person on his right. "Thanks." Was that a pang of jealousy she felt? Yep, probably.

"How was work?" Amy asked. She managed a smile-after all, she had taken acting classes years before-and replied. "Great, actually. So much better than working at the Cheesecake Factory."

She saw Sheldon smirk. "Although, I must admit, I miss you working at the Cheesecake Factory. Nobody could mess up our orders quite like you."

"Hey!" She replied defensively. "I could have spat at your food, buddy. And you wouldn't know." She loved their banters. Sometimes they'd make her mad, but when they ended, she'd realize how much she missed them.

They started eating their dinner and talking about their days. The routine was so familiar to her: the communal dinner, the science talk she doesn't understand, the cleaning-up after. It had become such a huge part of her life that she felt like her day wasn't complete without having dinner with the boys.

She watched as Sheldon led Amy to the door and gave her a quick kiss. "Goodbye, Amy," he said before closing the door. Sheldon and Amy have been together for a long while now, but seeing them together, unlike the communal dinner, wasn't part of her routine yet. She sighed quietly. "I have to go, sweetie. I have an early day tomorrow," she said to Leonard.

"Yeah, okay," Leonard, ever the understanding guy, replied. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

She nodded. "Love you." She said as she gave him a kiss. And wondered if she was telling the truth.

"I love you, too."

* * *

><p>"You were in love with Uncle Sheldon?!" I almost shouted in surprise. Her eyes widen. "Will you keep your voice down?"<p>

"Sorry," I replied. 'But... How? Why? Did you tell anyone?" My questions fire at her like a machine gun.

"How? No idea. Why? No idea. Did I tell anyone? Hell, no." She replies.

I look at her like she has three heads. 'Did you tell him? Did you tell... dad?"

"I never told Sheldon... nor your dad." She shrugs. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm happy with the life I've had..."

I shake my head in disbelief. "How... How hard could it be to tell someone you loved them?"

"Oh, sweetie," she says, almost laughing. "You won't know until you try!"

She keeps chuckling as I save the document I was typing on my laptop. _This is going to be one hell of a book, _I say to myself.


	2. Chapter 2

I have only met Uncle Sheldon once, and that was when I was a year old, so I really don't remember him. Mom and dad don't talk about him much, but I don't know why. All I know is that he used to be dad's roommate and that they used to work together at... CalTech, I think. I don't know

I know Uncles Howard and Raj, though, and their significant others. Auntie Bernadette is a small yet feisty lady. I've never told anyone this, but I'm actually kind of scared of her. Auntie Emily, though, is quiet and sweet, but she also kind of scares me sometimes. I see them all the time because they come to my mom and dad's house.

"Are you ready to continue the story?" She asks me. I open my laptop and nod.

* * *

><p>Penny went home to her apartment and sank into her couch with a glass of wine in her hand. She felt bad for lying to Leonard about having to be early the next day, but she felt as if she needed time to be alone. "You are such an idiot!" She chastised herself. "Stop feeling!"<p>

She groaned, knowing that talking to herself won't make it go away. It was messed up-what she was feeling was undoubtedly messed up. There she was, engaged to a great guy who loves her and takes care of her, and she's in love-there, she said it: in love-with someone else. Someone who sees her as just his roommate's love interest.

Maybe she just wasn't used to not being wanted. She was used to having guys gape at her whenever she passed by. She was used to being asked out by guys who had more brawn than brain. She was used to getting all the guys she wanted.

So why couldn't she get the one guy she desperately wanted to have?

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><p>"Hold on-let me see if I got this right," I say as I re-read what I have typed only seconds before. "You were used to getting all the guys you wanted?"<p>

She smirks. "I was hot! Give me a short, tight dress and a good pair of heels and I can get a guy in no time."

"Oh, good Lord." I groan. "Too much information!"

"Well, you asked." She replies.

"But... Uncle Sheldon wasn't... Fazed?" I ask.

She nods. "He's a different kinda guy, that Sheldon. He's not... well, normal, you know? I could have stood in front of him with no clothes on and he'd just shrug and go back to whatever he's doing."

"Did you try doing that?" I ask, secretly hoping that she didn't. "I..."

"Oh my God!" I groan once more and she laughs at my discomfort.

* * *

><p>She knew Saturday nights were his laundry nights. He did his own laundry in the basement of their apartment. He even had his little folding board because he was so precise. She knew these things-and more-about him. She had a little Sheldon-shaped folder in her brain where she stored each and every one of his quirks.<p>

But that night was different.

"Hello, Penny." He said as soon as he saw her. She was holding a basket of dirty clothes and were putting them one by one in the machine. "Hi..."

He occupied himself with his own laundry that he didn't notice what she was doing behind him. "Doing laundry?" She asked, words slurred.

"I wouldn't be in the laundry room if I wasn't going to do laundry," he replied.

She giggled. "But I thought this room had better acoustics for... your... throat singing."

He turned to face her. "Yes, you're right, but i have long since given up throat singing."

"Mmm," she shrugged. 'What a shame. You were pretty good..."

He turned around to face her again, and saw that she was flushed. "Are you well? You look sick, and I don't want to be around someone who is sick."

"Relax,' she said groggily. "I'm not sick..."

The smell of alcohol hit his nostrils then. "Penny? Are you intoxicated?"

She nodded. "I might have had a few drinks..."

"Oh, dear Lord," he muttered. She stepped closer to him. "I've thought about this for a while now. As a matter of fact, you've been in my thoughts for quite some time."

He didn't have time to process her words, because she took her shirt off, put it in the machine, closed the lid, and pressed a button to make it go. "What are you doing?" He asked, alarmed.

"Sheldon..." she muttered. But his Vulcan hearing picked up something else. "Penny! There are people heading here!"

She just smiled at him, and he realized that every single one of her clothes were in the machine. He could cover her, but with what? All his other clothes were in a machine as well. "Penny, unless you want strangers to see your bare chest, you might want to cover yourself up."

"No can do, sweetie," she smiled slyly. "Everything's in the wash. You can cover me, though..."

He sighed. "You're right." Without thinking, he lifted his short-sleeved Flash shirt, revealing his long-sleeved ones underneath. Why he wore two shirts she'll never know.

"Put this on," he told her, offering his shirt. She shook her head, and Sheldon heard the footsteps get louder. Whoever was coming was probably really close.

"Very well." He lifted her arms and slipped his shirt over her. She looked at the shirt she was now wearing. She found that she was really comfortable wearing his shirt. It ended in the middle of her thighs, and the sleeves toughed her elbows almost, but she never felt so comfortable in her life.

Until she passed out.

She woke up on her bed the next morning, still wearing Sheldon's shirt. Her laundry from yesterday night was neatly folded and placed at the foot of her bed. "Oh, crap." She said as soon as she felt the headache. "why'd you do that, Penny?" She groaned.

She heard knocks on her door-she knew it was Sheldon. "Come in, sweetie." She sat and waited for him to yell at her.

"Good morning," he greeted her with a knowing smile on his face, and it made her feel even more terrible.

She smiled back. "Sorry for last night."

"Don't worry. I am no stranger to the effects of alcohol." He replied. "I have taken the liberty of carrying you up to your room, washing, drying and folding your laundry and bringing them here, and leaving two aspirins and a glass of water on your bedside table, which I see you have not touched."

"Oh," she took the aspirins and finished half the glass of water in one gulp. "Thanks. Not just for the aspirin, but for everything. But did you really carry me up to my room all by yourself?"

He grinned. "Yes. I am not as weak as I may seem to you, Penny."

"Does Leonard know?" She asked. "Does anyone know?"

He shook his head, and she sighed with relief. "They were watching Babylon 5 the entire time."

"Thanks for not telling," she replied. "And I'm really, really sorry. And thanks for doing all of this."

He nodded. "You're my friend. That's what we do for our friends."

She stood, not giving a crap about the headache that she was feeling, and gave him a hug. "Well, then, thanks for being my friend."


	3. Chapter 3

"How come I've never eaten in the Cheesecake Factory before?" I ask mom incredulously as I sink my teeth into my cake. "This is delicious!"

She smiles and shrugs. We were sitting on the table she said was the usual table of dad and his buddies. I brought my laptop with me because I know she will be continuing with her story, but all I can focus on now is my cheesecake. They don't call this place the Cheesecake Factory for nothing.

"Aunt Bernadette and I used to work in this exact restaurant. She was still studying microbiology, and I was still dreaming of becoming an actress," she says fondly before she bites into her burger. "I used to tend the bar, too," she says as she points to the bar. "Your dad, Sheldon, Howard and Raj would sit here, and I'd bring them their orders. Sheldon was precise in his order, and I'd always mess up. I guess he just learned to live with it," she chuckles.

I smile as I imagine mom in the uniform I had seen our waitress in. "Tell me more," I say.

"Let's see..." She looks around the restaurant. "Sheldon had a strict schedule, and that included dinner. They were in here once a week," she says. "But there are times when he'd go in here alone, usually when there was something bothering him. One time I got him drunk on long island iced teas."

"Is that why he said he was no stranger to the evils of alcohol?" I say, laughing. Mom laughs with me. "Yeah. I was the one who got him drunk. In hindsight, I was probably the only one who could get him to do stuff he wouldn't normally do."

"Like what?" I ask.

She finishes her burger and wipes her mouth with the napkin. "I got him to drink, to accept an award and give a speech, to dance when he insisted on going with us on girls' night out, I made him buy a suit... Lots of things,' she says. "I love your dad, but he wasn't a pain in the butt like Sheldon. Leonard would do anything for me without me having to force him, but Sheldon challenged me. He was incredibly stubborn, that wackadoodle."

She notices me looking at a girl sitting alone in another table. "Found someone you like?"

"Uh, no," I shake my head profusely. "I just... Um..."

"Go talk to her," she ignores my denial.

My jaw drops. "No, thanks, mom."

She laughs. "Why not?"

"Because she's incredibly beautiful and I am way out of her league," I reply.

"Oh come on!" She laughs louder. "You're just like your father. He always thinks he's not good enough."

I glare at her. "Well I'm not!"

"Alright, look," she replies. "You're a strapping young man who has written two novels at the age of 24. You're kind, handsome, tall-thank God-and successful. I bet you can get any girl you wanted if you tried!"

"You're just saying that cause you're my mom," I reply.

She rolls her eyes. "Just talk to the damn girl, David."

I reluctantly stand from my table and walk over to the girl. I think she sensed that I was going to talk to her because she lifted her head and smiled before I could even speak. "Hi there," she greets me.

"Uh, hi," I say awkwardly. I could feel my mom staring at me from our table.

She points to the seat in front of her. "Would you like to sit?"

"Yeah, sure. Thanks," I reply. "I-I'm David."

She offers her hand for me to shake. "I'm Jamie. Is that your mom over there?"

So she did notice me before. "Yeah. I took her out for some lunch."

"That's so sweet. My mom and dad are both at work, so, here I am alone." She replies. "It's fine, though, they're great parents."

"That's, uh, good," I reply, and she looks at me expectantly. I remain silent, not really knowing what to say next. She checks her watch. "Oh, dear. I need to get back to the office in ten minutes," she writes down a couple of numbers on my arm. "Call me, alright?"

I manage a smile. "Yeah, sure." She returns a smile, the sweetest one I've ever seen. "Great. I gotta go. Nice meeting you, David."

"You too, Jamie-" I trail off.

"Cooper," she replies. "It's Jamie Cooper."

I go back to my mom's table with a huge, goofy smile on my face.

* * *

><p>Penny looked up from her TV as soon as she heard Sheldon's familiar knocks on her door. She opened the door at the urgency of her voice. "What's wrong?"<p>

He looked around and found that the apartment was neat. she had just resigned from her waitress job at the Cheesecake Factory and made use of her free afternoon to actually clean. Satisfied, he sat on the couch. "I had just realized that I can't go back to the Cheesecake Factory."

"Just because I'm not a waitress there anymore?" She asked.

"Yes," he replied. "Having a new waitress would mean I would have to educate yet another girl who wouldn't be able to get it right no matter how much I explain."

She laughed. "Don't say that! Who knows, you may get a waitress who will remember to put your sauce on the side and who won't spit on your food!"

He looked at her. "But it won't be the same without you," he replied. "I had gotten used to you being our waitress. Even though you were not particularly the best waitress there is, you get my order right once in a while. I don't want a new waitress!"

She smiled. Sheldon knew how to give compliments, but they were delivered usually in a harsh manner. "Sweetie, I know that you get uncomfortable with change, but life's full of them. Things change whether you like it or not. Besides, you were the one who said me resigning from the Cheesecake Factory was a good idea."

"It is," he said meekly. "I do want you to attain your goals."

"Thank you," she replied. "Do you wanna go to the Cheesecake Factory now? I'll make sure your new waitress gets your order right."

It was such a simple gesture, but it made him happy. Sheldon wouldn't tell anyone, but he deeply appreciated his friend Penny.


	4. Chapter 4

He always cheered her up when she was sad.

Not internationally-Sheldon doesn't know how to do that-but he did cheer her up nonetheless. It's like he felt it when she was sad.

"Come in, Sheldon," she responded as soon as he finished knocking on her door.

"Would you like a hot beverage?" He asked. When people are upset, offer them a hot beverage. That, he believed, was the social convention.

She smiled. "No, thanks. I'm fine."

"But..." he looked at her, confused. "Yeah, yeah, social whatever," she rolled her eyes. "I'm fine. What are you doing here?"

He sighed and sank down to the couch beside her. "Leonard is throwing a tantrum and frankly, I am not in the mood to deal with that right now."

That got a laugh out of her. "And you'd rather deal with my tantrum?"

He looked at her, a little bit scared. "You are not about to throw a tantrum, aren't you?"

"No, sweetie," she chuckled. "I do alcohol and ice cream, not tantrums, when I'm upset."

He smiled, and it was a sweet, genuine one. "What did you argue about?"

"Just... Wedding plans and stuff," she lied. "Nothing you have to worry about."

He nodded. "It's pathetic, I know," she continued. "I shouldn't be this upset."

"I didn't say you were pathetic," he replied.

"But I am," she pouted. "Do you want to know the real reason why we fought?"

He looked at her, confused. "I thought you said you were arguing about 'wedding plans and stuff,'" he said, complete with air quotes.

"Well, I lied," she shrugged. "Leonard was mad at you because of your 'stupid roommate agreement'-his words, not mine-and angrily stormed in here saying he should just move in with me," she replied.

"That's the second time this has happened," he commented, and she nodded. "Yeah, I know. But I had the same reaction as the first time it did."

He just sat there, waiting for her to speak. Sheldon was, in a way, a better friend than people give him credit for. "I mean, why can't I move in with the man I'm eventually going to marry?"

He just sat there quietly, not knowing how to react. "I... I should move in with him, right? Like an experiment, to get a taste of what our life's gonna be when we do get married?"

"If it makes you feel better," he replied. "Some couples don't do the kind of experiment you are suggesting before they get married. Although, that may be the reason why so many marriages fail."

She glared at him. "Thanks. That _does_ make me feel better." She replied sarcastically.

"You're welcome," he replied.

She sighed and spoke after a long silence. "Thanks for the company," she said.

"You're welcome," he said before standing up and heading towards the door. "I hope you feel better."

She smiled. "Yeah, me too."

She took her phone and unlocked it, staring at her wallpaper: a picture of her and Leonard.

* * *

><p>"So, are you gonna call the girl?" She asks me as soon as I set foot in the house. "What girl?"<p>

She rolls her eyes. "The girl from the Cheesecake Factory?"

"Oh, right," I shrug. "Nah, that's not gonna happen."

"What? Why?" She asks. Her voice was high-pitched-the voice she used whenever dad or I have done something terrible.

I sit on the dining table and watch her as she serves me spaghetti. "Thanks. She's... I don;t know, not my type."

"You've talked to her for like, 30 seconds, tops. How would you know if she's your type or not?" She asks.

I take a bite out of my spaghetti. "I just know."

"You are a piece of work just like your father," she replies. "Do you like the spaghetti? That's like, the only thing I cook that doesn't come out a disaster."

I nod. "It's really, really good. Maybe because of the little hotdogs in it."

"Yeah, well, Sheldon liked his spaghetti with little hotdogs, so I've been making it with that ever since," she replies, and I perk up at the sound of Uncle Sheldon's name.

"You never told me what happened that night you and dad argued about moving in together," I say it between bites.

She removes her apron. "Oh yeah," she sits on a chair in front of me. "Well, your dad and I ended up moving in together. I thought that if Leonard lived in my apartment, I wouldn't have to hang out in Sheldon's apartment all the time."

"Were you right?" I ask.

She laughs. "I was, yeah. But I ended up stalking him to the laundry room to complain about your father being a pain in the butt."

* * *

><p>"Will you take your Leonard back?" She said as soon as she entered the laundry room and saw Sheldon there.<p>

He turned around and grinned knowingly. "I take it your 'experiment' is not going well?"

"No, it's not that," she said as she loaded the machine. "It's just that... Leonard's being a jerk and you're not there to call him out on his crap. Amy's lucky to have you. At least you don't make her life miserable."

He shrug. "Can't say that I haven't tried."

She finished loading her machine and sat on top of another one as she waited for her laundry. "Hey! Be nice to Amy, Sheldon."

"Don't worry," he replied with a smirk. "If you were my girlfriend I would've tried to make your life miserable too."

She groaned. "You're horrible."

But she did like the thought of him being her boyfriend, horrible or not.

* * *

><p>"Oh, mom. You had it bad for Uncle Sheldon!" I tease her as she finishes her story.<p>

She shrugs. "Are you really just noticing that now because I thought that was pretty obvious," she shoots back. "But yeah, I was. I know I wasn't being fair to your dad and all but..." She sighs. "I'm a horrible person too, I know."

"No, your not," I reach over to put my hand over hers.

She smiles. "Do me a favor, will you?"

"Alright. What is it?" I ask.

She pauses before answering. "Call the girl, will you? Go to the movies or something."

"But..." I protest.

"Please?" She asks. "You need a girlfriend, David. Seriously."

I don't, but I acquiesce. "Fine, fine. I'll call her."

"Yay!" She exclaims. "Oh, by the way, what's the girl's name? Jamie something...?"

I nod. "Jamie Cooper."

Her eyebrows shot up. "Say what now?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy new year! Have a wonderful 2015, everybody!**


	5. Chapter 5

"Mom? You alright?" I ask as I notice her staring into space. I had just told her Jamie's full name and she now she looks like she's seen a ghost in broad daylight.

She blinks after a short moment, as if regaining consciousness, and I can tell that she was thinking about something. "Sweetie, I haven't been completely honest with you..."

"Penny?" Dad comes in through the front door, and she stood, obviously relieved for some reason. "Here in the dining room, Leonard. I just made spaghetti."

"Awesome! Cafeteria food got nothing on that," he replies. He sees me and gives me a hug. "Hey, buddy. What're you doing here?"

"Just eating some spaghetti," I say. "And telling mom about the girl I met: Jamie-"

"-Jamie! Yep, he met a girl, and her name is Jamie," mom cuts me off. "Jamie. He met her at the Cheesecake Factory and she gave him her number. Pretty, pretty girl."

Dad smiles. "Is she pretty? What does she do? Does she like Star Wars? Are you finally gonna get a girlfriend?"

"I just met her, dad. And what is it with you and finding me a girlfriend?" I ask. Dad shrugs and gets back to his spaghetti.

Mom looks at me. 'David, can I talk to you for a second?" I nod, and she pulls me into the living room.

"Alright. Right now I'm going to tell you about your first birthday." She says as we both sit on the couch.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Sheldon!" Leonard greeted him as soon as he stepped into his and Penny's apartment. "Hi Amy! Come on in!"<p>

Penny walked into the living room with her son David, who was turning one that day. "Hey, you guys! Thank you for coming!" She was tired, but she kept entertaining her guests the best way that she could under the circumstances. Who said she didn't learn anything from being a waitress?

"You look tired. Are you okay?" Amy asked as she saw her.

Penny smiled. "I have not slept for a year, sweetie," she replied. "But otherwise, I'm feeling fantastic."

"Happy birthday," Sheldon said as he looked at the boy. "My name is Dr. Sheldon Cooper."

"Geez," Penny muttered. "Leonard? Will you watch him for a second?"

Leonard rushed to his mother and son. "Yeah, sure," he said as he led Sheldon and Amy to the couch. "So how are you two?"

Penny busied herself with fixing food and drinks for her guests, and Leonard talked to them. Howard and Bernadette had just arrived, with Raj and Emily following them. They were the only guests in David's first birthday, but Penny wanted it that way. At least she could keep an eye on her toddler.

"I want one of these!" Amy exclaimed as she played with David. "Or two. Or three. Or four."

Sheldon glared at her. "Why? Children are messy and noisy."

"Well, their not called "bundles of joy" for nothing," Amy replied. "Besides, children are adorable! They're tiny humans! Think of it, Sheldon: you can do science experiments with them and play with them and take them to space camp..."

"Space camp?!" Sheldon exclaimed. "None of my progeny will be going to space camp!" He stormed off and went to his apartment.

"What did I do?" Amy asked Bernadette, who was just as stunned as she was. "Let him calm down, Amy. He'll be fine."

Penny, who heard Sheldon and Amy's conversation, remained nonchalant. "Leonard? Little help here, please?" He left David in the care of his friends and joined Penny in the kitchen.

"Food'll be ready in a few minutes. I'm going to go find Sheldon." She whispered to Leonard. "Alright. He's probably just in his apartment making a hot beverage."

She kissed Leonard on the cheek. "Thanks."

Penny entered the apartment in front of hers and found Sheldon making cocoa in the kitchen. "You're gonna spoil your appetite if you have cocoa before dinner," she said.

"I am not going back in there," he replied stubbornly.

She crossed her arms. "Just because Amy said something about your future kids going to space camp?"

"Well, not just that," he replied. "Amy's making all these plans. She wants us to get married and raise a family and live in a suburban area in a house with a big yard."

Penny swallowed the pain building up in her chest. "Every girl wants that."

"There's just one problem." He spoke quietly. "I don't want the same things."

She stared up at him, not fully understanding what he was saying. "You don't want a family and a house with a big yard?"

"I do. But not with Amy." He replied.

Penny licked her lips. "I don't understand."

They suddenly heard a knock on the door. "Uh, sorry to interrupt, but the guests are getting hungry and..." Leonard trailed off as he sensed the tension between Penny and Sheldon.

"Right," Penny sighed. "Come on, Sheldon. Have dinner with us, then we'll talk later, I promise. Okay?"

Sheldon nodded and followed the couple back to their apartment.

* * *

><p>As soon as the party was over, Penny excused himself to follow Sheldon into his apartment. Everyone had left, and Leonard was passed out from exhaustion on the couch with David. "I promised you we'd talk," she said.<p>

"I..." Sheldon hesitated. That was probably the first and last time she was going to see him so speechless. "As I was saying... The family and the house with the big yard... I don't want that with Amy Farrah Fowler."

Penny smiled. "Spit it out, sweetie. I'm not gonna tell her."

He sighed. "It's you," he replied. "I want to have all that with you."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: it's officially 2015 in the Philippines and in other parts of Asia! Yay! To those people who are still living in 2014, have a good new year! (Don't get too drunk! I'm kidding.) **


	6. Chapter 6

That was not what she was expecting to hear.

For what seemed like an eternity, she stared at him, mouth slightly open. "I... I gotta go," she managed to choke out. She ran straight into her apartment and shut the door.

"What happened?" Leonard asked as she sat on the couch beside the child.

She shook her head. "I honestly have no idea what the hell just happened," she replied.

"Um... Okay." He nodded. "Uh, Penny?" She turned to look at him. "Yeah?"

"Maybe we should start planning our wedding," he replied. "I mean, it's been a year, and..."

"You weren't even here for most of that year," she whispered. "Well, my brother's still in prison, but I guess, yeah, we can start planning."

He sighed. "Why does that matter to you so much? Does your brother who is in prison such an important guest?"

Her eyes widened. "He's family, Leonard! Wouldn't you want your family to come to your wedding?"

"But he has been in prison for a long time! Who knows when he's going to be released? What if he gets out in the year 2020 do we get married then?" He replied, now angry.

She clenched her fist. "You know what? I don't want to talk about this. We'll plan the wedding tomorrow, okay?"

Leonard didn't answer. He went to the bathroom, leaving her and the child.

"Oh, sweetie. Life is complicated, I'll give you that." She said as she sat him down on her lap. "I made the right choice, right? Being with Leonard... Wanting to get married with Leonard?"

David remained silent. She looked at the door, thinking about Sheldon. "Maybe it's time people find out who your real dad is."

* * *

><p>"What's happening, mom? Are you saying that Uncle Sheldon is my dad?" I ask quietly.<p>

She sighs. "Yeah, yeah. I'm a horrible person, I know."

"How did that happen?" I ask again. If she was going to drop a bombshell on me then I might as well know the full details.

"Well... Just about a month after we moved in together, Leonard and I had a huge fight. He was angry because I wasn't doing anything. I just quit my job at the Cheesecake Factory, and I was at home 24/7." She replies.

"But I _was _doing something. Someone ordered a thousand Penny Blossoms for a party. They are little homemade flowers that can be used for decorating stuff. Anyway, Sheldon, Howard and Raj were helping me after they get off from work. Leonard stayed in CalTech because he had equipment he can only use at night. He'll get home in the morning and find no evidence that we were making Penny Blossoms because Sheldon was such a meticulous cleaner," she sighs again. "One day, the stress and the sleeplessness took its toll on him, and he got really angry at me. He said that I quit my job because I was lazy and dependent on him. He stormed out of the apartment after he said that he can't marry someone who didn't want to make something out of their lives."

I shake my head. "Well... That's shallow," I reply.

"I know," she replies. "But then ugly thoughts got to my head. I realized how not-good-enough I am for Leonard. I wasn't a genius who does experiments in CalTech with them. I don't have the same high-paying job as him. I don't even have the same vocabulary as him! Every time he says something scientific, I just literally stare at him. So I thought, if he doesn't want to marry someone like me, then I wouldn't want to marry someone like him!"

"But then Sheldon came into my apartment. We were all scheduled to make another batch of Penny Blossoms, but he was the only one available. And he cheered me up again, like he always did. And I realized that I was still in love with him like the stupid piece of crap that I am. Then one thing led to another. I initially thought, 'there is no way he will kiss me back.' But we ended up in bed." She replies while shaking her head, like it was a memory she'd rather forget.

"I got pregnant, obviously, but I didn't tell anyone who knocked me up. Six months later Leonard knocks on my door and says that he can't live without me. He saw my growing belly and, even though he didn't know who that baby's real dad was, offered to keep him as his own." She smiles fondly this time. "That's you."

I put my head on my hands, not knowing how to react. "Does Uncle Sheldon know?" I ask, and she shakes her head. I reach for my phone. "I'm calling Jamie. She's probably Uncle Sheldon's daughter, anyway. You need to talk to him."

"Yeah, I guess," she replies. I dial Jamie's number and wait for her to pick up.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry if the chapter's short. The next one's gonna be Penny and Sheldon's meeting, and (a lot of) questions will be answered there.**


	7. Chapter 7

How hard was it to track Sheldon Cooper down? Not hard, apparently.

I watch as mom fiddle with her fingers while riding shotgun in my car. "You okay?" I ask.

"Kinda, yeah," she replies. "This is huge for me too."

I smile. "What's gonna happen after this?" She shrugs. "Nothing, I hope. Leonard and I are perfectly happy together, so..."

I purse my lips, and she turns to me. "What do you want to happen after this?"

"Well... I guess I just want to know why you three ended up this way. I mean, I love dad as much as you do, but Uncle Sheldon was in love with you too, and I don't get why you ran away." I replied.

She nods. "You know what? Sometimes I ask myself why I ran away too."

I keep driving, not telling her where I'm taking her, but I know that she recognizes the places we pass. "We're really close. Are you ready?"

"Doesn't matter," she smiles. Her smile disappears as she realizes where we're going. "Really? Here?"

I look for a parking space. "Yep. Two decades later and the man still lives here." I turn off my car's engine and look at the building where mom and dad-well, both Leonard and Sheldon-used to live.

"Let's go?" She asks. I nod, and she leads me to the elevator. "This is literally the first time I've seen this elevator work," she comments.

I laugh. "Yeah, dad told me the story. Something about a model rocket and the wrong kind of rocket fuel."

"We're here. We're really here." She says as the elevator doors open. We take a left, and she knocks on the door.

A man opens the door and smiles when he sees us. "Hello," he says. "Come in."

"Hi, Sheldon." Mom greets him as we step inside. "Your apartment looks... the same," she awkwardly says.

He nods. "I don't like change."

"I remember." Mom replies. "Do you remember David?" She glances at me.

He nods again. "Of course. Although the last time I saw him he was a toddler." He smirks at me.

"Obviously." Mom sighs. "Anyway, I have something to tell you. And I really do hope that I don't make you upset."

I am sitting on the end of the couch trying not to eavesdrop at the two people right in front of me, but I can't help myself. "Alright. Well... David's not Leonard's kid. He's yours."

Uncle Sheldon's face doesn't show much emotion, said mom once. It doesn't surprise me that his face remains straight and immobile "Penny, I have an IQ of 187, two doctorates, and have more credentials than most people I know. Do you really think I don't know that?"

"Um..." She mutters. He cocks his head to the side. "Penny, I knew from the moment I saw your growing belly that it was my son you were carrying. I know how coitus works. I knew that you loved Leonard and believed he would come back to you, so I didn't say anything about us and told him to apologize to you. I knew Leonard would make a suitable father, and, looking at David now, I can say that I was right in my assumption."

She stares at him, still silent. "Remember when I told you that I wanted a life with you? I meant that," he continues.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" She asks, and he shrugs. "I wasn't even supposed to tell you at all," he replies. "Why did you run away?"

Mom raises her eyebrows. "Because the whole time I was pregnant you didn't say anything. Because the whole time I didn't know where Leonard was, you helped me with the pregnancy, but you never said anything. Because the one time I told you to stay with me, you didn't!"

Mom was starting to get angry. "Why tell me a whole year later? When Leonard and I were settled and happy with our lives and our baby?" Sheldon doesn't answer, so she continues talking. "All those years I wished you were the one I was with. Even before I fell in love with Leonard it was you I had feelings for. But you knocked me up but never made me feel like you had feelings for me as well-that you even cared for me-so I moved on. And just when I was starting to fall out of love with you, you tell me that you wanted to be with me. I've already moved on that night, Sheldon!"

"Don't tell me that I didn't care about you, because I did! I might not have said it in words, but my clumsy, seemingly random actions tried to show you that I cared. I've never told anyone this, but I actually cared for you more than I have ever cared for someone in my life," he replies.

Mom's tears were threatening to fall, so she runs into his chest. "What happened to us?"

"Well," he replies as he wraps his arms around her. "We fell in love with each other at the wrongest of times."

"What happened to Amy?" She asks. "I had to terminate our relationship. It's hard to love someone and be in love with another one."

She chuckles. "I know. I've tried." She entangles herself from him and looks up. "I'm sorry for everything. For being an ass to both you and Leonard and for running away."

"I'm sorry, as well. For everything." He smiles. "I know this isn't the life that we imagined we would have, but unless it could be traded for a life with you, I wouldn't trade this life for anything. My only regret is that I never got to watch my son grow," he says as he looks at me.

"Yeah, well." She smiles. "I love you, Sheldon. Thank you for being my friend."

"My pleasure. And I love you, too." Sheldon replies with a huge grin on his face.

"Um, Sheldon?" Mom suddenly asks. "Yes?"

She glances at me. "Who's Jamie Cooper?"

"Oh, yes, David told me over the phone that he got my number from Jamie," he replies. "Well, she's not my daughter. She's my niece."

Maybe it was just my imagination, but I think mom just sighed in relief.


	8. Chapter 8

Mom asked to bring her home after she had talked to Uncle Sheldon, so that's exactly what I did. We sit in the living room, staring at each other but not talking.

Do I know what was on her mind? No. But there was something in there.

"You alright?" I ask, and she responds with a smile. "That couldn't have gone better," she says.

I nod. "How was it? Seeing him again?"

"Well... Lots of memories came rushing in. Especially because his apartment still looks the same as I remember," she replies. "But it was nice seeing him again." She isn't looking at me directly, so I realize that she is holding something back. "I think you're lying," I say with a smirk.

She rolls her eyes at me. "Yeah, alright," she sighs. "So some of the old feelings I had for him surfaced but that's it," she replies. "It's not like I'm going to get a divorce from your dad or something."

"Some of the old feelings you had for him surfaced, huh," I mutter. "Maybe it's because they haven't left."

* * *

><p>She was nine months pregnant. She was huge as a boulder, she was restless, and she was absolutely exhausted. And now she was glaring at the door because Sheldon was knocking and her huge belly made it impossible to stand up to open the door for him. "Door's locked and I can't move. If you want to go in get your spare key in your apartment," she said to the door.<p>

Seconds later she heard Sheldon knocking again. "Are you kidding me? Just open the door!" He did, and he entered her apartment awkwardly. "How are you?"

"Fine," she replied. "What are you doing here?"

He shrugged. "Leonard is at work so I figured I'd look after you in case you needed something."

"Thanks," she replied. "But I've got everything I need right here."

"Alright." He replied before turning to exit.

Penny watched him go, but just ten seconds after, she felt... something. "Oh, no. Sheldon!" She shouted. Sheldon came rushing back into her apartment. "What is it?"

"I think," she looks down. "The baby's coming."

Sheldon's eyes grew wide. He grabbed a brown paper bag from her coffee table. "Are you freaking hyperventilating?!" She asked. "Sheldon!"

But he was, in fact, hyperventilating. He sank down to the couch beside her. "You have _got _to be kidding me," she sighed. She put her hand on his back to calm his down. "Alright. Breathe, breathe, breathe..."

Then she felt the first contraction. "Can't you calm down any faster?" She asked. "I'm making a mess on my couch, Sheldon..."

He let go of the paper bag. "What... What do we do? I'm calling Leonard."

"He's at work. His phone's on silent when he's at work," she replied. "I need to go to the hospital; I am not having this baby in my house!"

He cocked his head to the side. "Actually, some women prefer to give birth at home..." She cut him off. "Not in my house! Don't you know how messy that is going to be?"

"What do we do?" He asked again, and she knew he was on the verge of another panic attack. "Alright, look," she said as calmly as she can, even when the second contraction hit her like a speeding train. "You're gonna have to drive me to the hospital."

"No!" He exclaimed. "Don't you remember what happened the first time I drove you to the hospital?"

She was pissed. "Do you want a doctor to deliver my baby and wait peacefully in a waiting room or do you want to do it yourself and be covered with the grossest of bodily fluids?" She asked.

He paused to consider. "Alright, I am driving you to the hospital."

"Finally," she replied. "My keys are on my bedside table."

Sheldon ran to the room, got her keys, and helped her up. He gently helped her down the stairs and into her car. "Ready?" She asked.

"Yes," he replied, and Penny said a little prayer as he eased out of the parking lot and into the road.

* * *

><p>Sheldon sat beside Penny's bed. He had an aversion to hospitals, but he couldn't leave her alone. Not until Leonard was there. "Where's Leonard?" She asked.<p>

"He is on his way," he replied as he gave her a cup of ice chips. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "I'm much better, sweetie. Thanks for driving me here."

"You're welcome," he replied. He stared at her, amazed by how calm she was being. And how beautiful she looked throughout the whole ordeal.

"Guess we're ready to deliver the baby," one of the nurses said. "Are you doing alright?" She asked Penny, and she nodded in reply.

Sheldon sighed. "I'll be in the waiting room," he told her.

"Stay," Penny replied. "Leonard's not yet here and I can't do this alone."

He nodded. "Alright."

"Alright," the nurse echoed him. "Doctor's here."

Penny clutched his hand really tight, but he did not complain. His hand felt like it was going to come off, but he ignored the pain. He smoothed her hair off her sweaty forehead with his other hand and witnessed the birth of his-their-son.

He had never felt happier.

* * *

><p>Sheldon stares at his TV, not actually paying attention. He is thinking about so many things-physics, superheroes, the Chinese food he was going to order for dinner-but it's the thought of Penny that makes him smile.<p>

She doesn't know it yet, but he was going to get her back.


End file.
